Classic Boats. Or, Organic Boats.
As I am working now full time on my boat to make it ready for the MT Dora show I have come to a big conclusion. No matter how hard I try, the boat will never be perfect. And to that matter, none of them ever will be. These darn things are organic. They live and breath. I made a decision a year ago to not replace the sides of my boat. I refastened them. I sanded, fared, and varnished 12 coats. And every time, after a couple of days. They expand, shrink and just move. I love it. The boat is alive and doing what is has done for 67 years. I hope I am breathing like that after 67 years. But, almost everyone has something to say. They all want the sides to be perfect. They seem disappointed. Why? It’s organic, 100% natural, boat house raised, I say. It’s the way the boat gods intended them to be. They respond to water just like any living breathing thing. I have also noticed that everything on the boat changes. Daily. It’s all just getting used to it’s new skin. You fix one thing and another little uuuggee as we call them pops up. At first I chased these things down, but over time I have learned to love them. The sides especially. Look at countless photo’s of the day. Look at the factory promo photo’s, all the sides are moving. It’s one of the many things that I love about these boats. They are alive and well, now if you will excuse me, I am off to some free range boating.
Your boat is looking great! If you would, post some of your restoration photos over at Antiquemarina. I would love to see the start to finsh of your labor of love.
After getting my boat back from the restorer I needed to make the call to use the boat as intended or keep in a temperature and humidity controled environment so it would always look perfect. Figured that would be a total waste and not what it was intended for. I’ve learned to love all the lttle defects that show up as she moves and adjusts. If you want perfect all the time go fiberglass. But that kind of boat has no intrinsic life to it.